328: Speedometer light sockets

I am attempting to remove the light sockets on the back of my 328's speedometer to put in the better bulbs mentioned in a previous post on this forum.

The problem is that they will just not budge; while I do have two replacement sockets available, I'd rather not have to bust the old sockets to get them out (which at the moment seems like the only solution). Any bright ideas?

Also, the wires will not readily pull off of the back of the sockets. Based on the new sockets I have, it appears that the wire should just pull straight off the back, but is there anything else I need to know?